Search

I found the semi-traditional market at the Sunter neighborhood, North East Jakarta, fascinating. I deemed it as semi-traditional because it’s not a real traditional market with dirt floor and it’s not a supermarket either. I have only a vague recollection of going into such market; my duty as a child was to study hard and not be concerned with day-to-day household operation.

This market houses most things and services people need, such as tailors for quick alterations. Even if it’s a bit shabby, I saw some of the best produce I’ve ever seen. The fruit stand I saw stocked guavas, papayas, star fruits, mangoes, mangosteen, jambu air (or water guava, the red fruits on the foreground), salak (snake fruits), as well as other well-known tropical fruits.

I took plenty of pictures while trying to be discreet… I am not sure if people are generally OK with their pictures taken by some random person. Once I was stopped from taking pictures of a crackers label at a grocery store in Bandung, Indonesia.

I think Indonesian concept of breakfast is basically lunch eaten at an earlier time. The dish below was one of three we tried that morning…. It is broad rice noodle soup with cubed chicken (marinated in sweet soy sauce and other spices). Adding hot sauce is optional, but the sauce is ubiquitous even at 7:30 AM.

The drink is iced soy milk, but it doesn’t taste like the “westerner’s” soy milk. It’s lighter and tastes like tofu early in the process. On the background (in the rectangular plastic container) are some chinese donuts, and in the pink container are fried beef balls or what Indonesian called bakso. And no, those beef balls are not euphemism…

A lone fish ball… Its compadres were already in my tummy. The logo/writings of this bowl and the other bowl are of MSG brands.